ASIA TODAY A Taliban delegation visits Indonesia

Other news today: Pyongyang launches two ballistic missiles and Seoul blocks impeachment over Itaewon Halloween massacre. Vietnam wants to increase the production of rare earths. New arrest warrant for Imran Khan in Pakistan as MPs lament they have yet to receive a firearms licence. Dozens of Rohingya refugees arrested in India.

AFGHANISTAN – INDONESIA

A Taliban delegation visited Indonesia in recent weeks “to improve relations” between Afghanistan and the world’s most populous Muslim country, Nikkei Asia has found. The visit, analysts say, is an attempt by the Taliban to gain greater international recognition and encourage foreign investment to bolster Afghanistan’s economy, which is one of the poorest in the world.

KOREA

North Korea launched two ballistic missiles off its own eastern coast following the arrival of a US nuclear-powered submarine in South Korea. Meanwhile, the Seoul Constitutional Court ruled against impeachment Interior Minister Lee Sang-min for the government’s response to the events that occurred on Halloween last year, when more than 150 people were killed in a crowd in Itaewon district.

VIETNAM

vietnam has decided increase production of rare earths to 2.02 million tons per year by 2030. According to the United States Geological Survey, the Southeast Asian country has the world’s second-largest reserves of rare earths after China, with around 22 million tons. Vietnam’s rare earth production jumped from 400 tons in 2021 to 4,300 tons last year.

PAKISTAN

Three weeks before the end of his term, parliamentarians in Pakistan’s National Assembly complained that they still have not obtained a license to own weapons. Defense Minister Khawaja Asif not only supported the request of the deputies but also stated that all citizens need weapons due to the deterioration of security in the country. Meanwhile, Pakistan’s Election Commission has again called for the arrest of Prime Minister Imran Khan in one of the dozen cases in which he is indicted.

MYANMAR–INDIA

Indian police arrested 74 Rohingya refugees, including 10 minors, for living “illegally” in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh. According to UNHCR, in just over a month the number of internally displaced people in Myanmar due to civil conflict has increased by almost 50,000 people, especially in the Tanintharyi region. “Children and young people are subject to arrest and forced recruitment,” the UN stressed.